We were in charge of styling and photo direction as well as graphic design for THE CONRAN SHOP’s 2016 Christmas catalogue. In collaborating with an illustrator, we were able to create a catalogue that is playful and builds anticipation for the Christmas season.

Since autumn of 2015, we have been in charge of styling and photo direction as well as the graphic design for THE CONRAN SHOP shop cards and catalogues.

THE CONRAN SHOP is a retail brand from London that specializes in furniture and home accessories with cutting-edge designs. With several stores in the country, its unique and quality products has made it one of the most highly regarded retails stores in Japan.
In the summer of 2015, coinciding with the brand’s founder Terrence Conran passing the mantle of brand director to his son and fashion designer Jasper Conran, we were reached out to realize the companies shifting brand focus and image.

With the reopening of ‘hotel kanra kyoto’ in October 2016, artless Inc. was in charge of creating the visual identity as well asthe signage system of the hotel.

The design tenet for this project was ‘Kirei-sabi’, an aesthetic sense and philosophy of Kyoto/Japan, which was realised through the logotype, typography, pictograms, and the tastefully weathered color scheme of coal black and copper red that were used in the signage and print materials.

While elements of traditional Japanese culture are present in all levels of the design, to meet demands of a growing inbound market in Kyoto, all written materials are in both Japanese and English. Our goal for this project was to build a new brand image of ‘hotel kanra kyoto’ that is international in scope with a Japanese essence.